Electrical wall cabinet



June 23, 1936. p 1. D. ISI LVERMAN 2,044,860

ELECTRICAL WALL CABINET Filed April ll, 1931 s Sheeis-Sheec 1 u w I 15 III H 5e 37 5- E 7 I 2 g 5 June 23, 1936.

l. D. SILVERMAN ELECTRICAL WALL CABINET Filed April 11, 1931 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 2,4 gwwzntov I 3 Sheejzs-Shet 3 June 23, l 936.

Filed April 11, 1931 \w w 0/? W a /H 3 v w m 7 will? M H 6 z z 9 a 5/. H 4 w w M M I Ba 1 I 5 1. H MW Z E 9 2 5 H .9 3 wh '2 H 5 rm HI.

Patented June 23, 1936 UNETED STA ES PAT ENT' 0 FF i 1' E 4 Claims.

This invention relates to metal enclosures for electrical devices or for collections of electrical devices, such as fusible cut-outs, banks of switches, fuses and switches, electrical panels, panel boards, switchboards and the like. Cabinets of this character have a back box which is set in the wall during the course of construction, and which is then fixed in its surroundings, as by being fastened to neighboring structural members, or by being embedded in the masonry or by being supported partly or wholly by rigid electrical conduits in the wall. The front of the cabinet is put in place later, after the finish plastering 'has been completed. The back box having been set in the roughing is frequently found to be out of true, being skewed in a plane parallel with the face of the wall or cooked in planes perpendicular to the face, or both, in addition to which even though the back box may be set inan otherwise true position, it is usually impossible to predetermine accurately *how far back it will be from the finished plaster line. The fuse block, panel or the like is customarily fastened by screws or the like to the back of the back box, and it is a troublesome and time-consuming matter to adjustit, by blocking up or otherwise, in relation to the trim, the door and'the inner shield Which'is required in what is known as the safety type of boxes, this inner shield being commonly integral with the trim. The adjustment which can be obtained in this way is only an in-and-out adjustment and does not compensate for skewing of the backboX. Consequently the trim has often to be applied to the wall surface at a similar skew, which is highly undesirable. The trim could not be placed true without regard to the disposition of the back-box, because the trim has heretofore been fastened to the back-box by screws the holes for which are preformed in the trim and in the front of the back-box, and also because of the requirement for a shield which shall form an inner cover when the door is open, preventing access to wiring and connections and exposing only the necessarily accessible portions of the fuses, switches and the like, or the solid faces of the blocks or panels in which these devices may be mounted. Accordingly this shield must fit the electrical devices, or their blocks or panels, and must come up to the trim and around the door opening in the trim, so as to form a shallow outer enclosure, behind the door.

Objects of this invention are to provide for complete adjustment in a quick and easy manner, to insure an accurate relation between the electrical devices, the shield and the front of the cabinet notwithstanding any adjustment that is made, and to obviatethe necessity for screws appearing on the face of the trim. The adjustments provided for are adjustments forward and backward and rotatable or angular, in addition to 5 which the adjustment features preferably allow for a degree of adjustment straight up and down or sideways, all for the purpose of enabling the trim and door to be alined and trued perfectly with the finishedsurface of the wall and with 10 respect to the horizontal and vertical.

The invention includes, as one part, the back box which is built into the wall in the ordinary way, and which may be true and plumb or not and which may lie in the wall at different dis- 15 tances from the final surface. The other part of the cabinet includes the trim, the door, a carrier for the electrical devices, which are supported independently of the back box except for the adjustable fastening-between this unit and the backbox, the shield, and front portions which bear against the face of the wall and automatically aline this entire part with the finish plane. The fastening and adjustment between the :front part, thus constituted, and the back box is effected by :means of screws carried by the back box and cooperating with slotted openings in the front part, so that by tightening the screws the front part can be automatically drawn fiat to the Wall surface, irrespective of the depth or the fore and aft tilt vertically or laterally, of the back box, and so that by rotatable adjustment of the front part and carrier about-a center more or less perpendicular to the wall face, all the necessary relations can be brought into harmony with the horizontal and vertical in a plane parallel to the finish face of the wall.

The invention is susceptible of embodiment in various forms, certain of which are illustrated herein.

In the accompanying drawings, forming a part hereof:

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of a simple and preferred embodiment of the invention, the door being shown open and broken out in its vertical middle region because of lack of space;

Fig. 2 is a vertical section taken on a plane parallel with the face of Fig. l, as on the line 22 of Fig. 3, illustrating in a graphic manner that the front unit, including electrical devices and their carrier, has beenadjusted true to the horizontal and vertical in a plane parallel with the finish face of the wall, whereas the back box is skewed in this plane;

Fig. 3 is a section taken 'on the line 3--3 of Fig. 2, showing how the back box may be tilted fore and aft and this be taken care of by the construction;

Fig. 4 is a front elevation of an application of the invention to a cabinet housing both fuses and switches, the door being open and broken away, and a portion of the shield being also broken away;

Fig. 5 is a section on the line 5-5 of Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is a vertical section similar to the lower portion of Fig. 6, illustrating two modifications in detail;

Fig. 7 is a face view of another modification of the invention, the door being open and broken away and various other parts being broken out to give an understanding of this embodiment without unnecessarily multiplying the drawings;

Fig. 8 is a horizontal section through Fig. '7; and

Fig. 9 is a detail perspective view of a modification.

The invention is capable of assuming numerous modifications in addition to those illustrated, but for persons skilled in the art the showing will be sufficient and the description can be brief.

The form shown in Figs. 1 to 3 will be described first.

2 is the trim. It is a plate which is put against the finished face 3 of the wall, overlapping it. It has a rectangular door opening 4, to be closed by a hinged door 5. In forms of the invention there may be more than one door. The door when closed lies in a rabbet 6, so as to be flush with the trim. The door hinges, connecting it to the trim, are marked 1, and 8 is a catch, representing any suitable catch, lock, or both, for holding the door closed.

9 is the back box set in the roughing. Purely for illustration it is shown in Fig. 3 as being fastened by screws l0, passing through the back I l of the box into members l2, which may be thought of as extending between studs or other structural parts of the wall. The back box is a sheet metal enclosure having the back wall II, and bounding walls consisting of a top l3, a bottom [4, and sides l5 and. It. The bounding walls have the usual knock-outs [1, so that conduits and cables can be connected and/or admitted at chosen points. Two conduits l8 and I9 are shown for illustration. The back box is an essential part of the enclosure as will be understood by those familiar with these matters. It must be built into the wall in connection with the rough construction, and from that necessity have arisen the diificulties which have been so troublesome in this part of electrical installations in buildings.

The trim or face frame 2 is separate from the back box, and in this embodiment, which is preferred for decided advantages, it is in one integral unit with the carrier 20 for the group of electrical devices. The electrical devices may be, for example, a set of fuses 2| screwed into the electrical devices from the wire raceway 26 formed between the walls of the carrier and the bounding walls of the back box. Under accepted understanding in such matters, the bounding walls 23 of the carrier form gutters. These gutters have suitable openings 21 of appropriate shape and location, for admitting from the raceway the wires which pertain to the particular electrical devices in question.

In this form the back ll of the back box has screw-threaded sockets 28 for the firm reception of fastening and adjustment screws 29. Two of these screws are shown, but there may be four or any desired number of them, suitably placed. The screws project into the interior of the box and in this form terminate at the front in heads 3!) kerfed for the application of a screwdriver.

The bottom 24 of the carrier 20 has curved slots 3| through which the screws can pass, and because these particular screws have integral heads, the slots have enlargements 32 at one end to allow the bottom of the carrier to be introduced over the heads. In that operation the carrier, and consequently the trim, must be turned decidedly out of true, after which the carrier and trim are turned to approximately true position, the screws are screwed in almost tight, the final adjustment is then made in respect to the horizontal and vertical parallel with the face of the wall, and the screws are finally tightened. Because the trim 2, which is a front portion united with the carrier, bears against the face of the wall, the tightening of the screws automatically adjusts the carrier in respect to depth without other precaution. This is what is meant in connection with this invention as adjustment in and out with relation to the back box. It is an adjustment which is taken care of by the action of the screws drawing the trim, or other overlapping front part, against the wall, without thought or trouble on the part of the workman.

Two of the slots 3| are shown in full. lines in Fig. 2, at top and bottom of the bottom 24 of the carrier, and two others are indicated in dotted lines at the sides, to show that there may be two or four of these slots. They may be located as shown, or in the corners. They are curved approximately about the same center, and they are preferably enough wider than the shanks of the screws to allow for bodily adjustment of the carrier and front trim straight up and down or to one side or the other. The screws may be provided with flanges 33 or wash ers may be placed beneath the heads of the screws to overlap the edges of the slots.

The shield 34 is a separate plate which is applied over or against the electrical devices, their block, panel or other immediate support, so as to close off the opening behind the door 5, except for access to the fuses, switch handles or other necessary parts, and to block 01f all possible or accidental access to the wires or connections. As shown in these views it is a plate having a central opening which fits around the projection 35 of the fuse block in which the fuse sockets open. It extends across between all the gutters 23 of the carrier and is fastened to them by screws 36 which take into lugs 31 welded to the inner surfaces of the gutters. are long enough to allow for adjustment of the shield forward and backward, depending upon the depth of the fuse block.

In Fig. 6 a modification is shown in which the shield has bent-out flanges 38 which lie against These screws the inner surfaces of the gutters, these flanges being slotted to receive, adjustably, screws 36, which are screwed sideways into the gutters. This view also illustrates .a modification in respect to the screw fastenings which secure the carrier and front of the box to the back box while allowing for the universal adjustment of that part in relation to the back box. Here the screws 29 are studs which are rigidly fastened to the back of the back box. Their heads, therefore, are represented by nuts 30*. The effect is precisely the same, with the simple exception that it is unnecessary to provide the slots 3| with enlargements 32, since the heads of the screws are not permanent.

' The removable shield 34 forms, with the walls 23 of the carrier, a shallow front enclosure 39 behind and within the area of the opening for the door 5. The main adjustment screws 29 are accessible before this shield is applied, and after the shield is is place nothing but the electrical devices are exposed when the door is opened.

In addition to the advantages of economy in manufacture and facility of installation inherent in this and other forms of the inventions, attention may be called to the fact that no screws need appear on the face of the trim.

Figs. 4 and illustrate a cabinet designed to hold a fuse block 22 and a set of switches 40. The construction is similar to that which has been described, and similar parts may be designed with the same reference characters, notwithstanding differences in form or proportions. The switches 40 are attached to bars 4| which extend between and are secured to side gutters 23 of the carrier. The shield 34 has openings 42 for the handles of these switches as well as for the protruding face of the fuse block 22. Four of the curved adjustment slots 3| in the bottom of the carrier are shown in the corner regions.

While it is especially desirable that the carrier for the electrical devices form in effect an inner box or enclosure, this need not always be true. Thus two of the sides might be omitted, in which event the carrier would assume the form of a bridge, which bridge might be further simplified.

Again one or more of the bounding walls or gutters may be removable or may be of insulating material.

Figs. '7 and 8 illustrate a form of execution substantially similar to that of Figs. 1-3, except that two of the sides of the carrier, considered as gutters, are omitted, the carrier 2|] thus becoming a form of bridge having front portions to bear against the finish plaster line. This modification may be carried farther than is shown in these views, which illustrate a closer approximation to Figs. 1-3, and which also illustrate the fact that the trim need not be in one piece with the carrier, though that is very advantageous, and that, indeed, the trim, with the door, may be separate from the carrier and may be applied thereto after the carrier with its shield have been properly adjusted to the plaster line and to the vertical and horizontal.

In these views, the trim is marked 2 and the door 5 The trim is a rectangular frame plate having a rearwardly bent edge 59 to close over the front part 5| of the carrier and come against the wall. The carrier here shown is pressed from sheet metal to form the outwardly extending front part 5| which overlaps the finish face of the wall to secure automatic alinement therewith, and a rearwardly projecting box flange 52, into which the removable shield 34 is set, behind the door.. The 'tront'apart or frame of the car'- rier extends inward beyond the inner edges of the door opening in .the trim 2 to form the rabbet for the .door. The trim is shown as being secured to the front of the carrier by screws 53. The appearance of such screws on the face of the cabinet being otherwise undesirable, it will naturally :suggest itself that the trim and the front of the carrier, though originally of separate pieces, might be united by welding or soldering. Screws, such as 53, permit the trim and door to .be applied after the carrier has been adjusted and secured to the back .box, if that should be desired for any reason.

United with the front enclosure walls 52 of the carrier, as by welding, is a -U-shaped yoke carrier 54, extending backward into the back box and carrying the r fuse block, or other electrical base, within it and between it and the shield and the front door. The adjustable fastening of the carrier tothe back box is like that described in connection with the other forms.

In some cases, it is desirable not to segregate the electrical devices from the wire raceway or space between the carrier and the sides of the back box, but to remove or cut away the sides more or less so that ready access may be had for making connections. The construction shown in Figs. 7 and 8 is an illustration of one way in which large access openings can be provided through or at one or more of the sides of the carrier. In the safety type of box, such openings are not accessible as long as the shield was in place, but are accessible when the shield is removed.

Fig. 9 illustrates a slightly modified form of carrier which might be used in the embodiment of the invention disclosed in Figs. '7 and 8. As will be noted, the front part 5| of the carrier is cut away on two of its edges, leaving only narrow ledges 55 of a suflicient width to form the bottom of the rabbet for the door. This construction provides for easy accessibility to the wires or connections in the raceway, it only being necessary to remove the trim to inspect or repair the wiring when desired, since the part 5| in this case is much narrower than the opening in the wall. Obviously, instead of cutting the carrier plate away, suitable apertures might be made therein.

A yoke form of carrier such as shown in Figs. '7 and 8 lends itself to inexpensive construction, and in this connection it will be obvious that a simple yoke could be provided with outwardly bent v ends to bear against the plaster line instead of using the plate 5| for this purpose, or the front ends of the yoke could be welded or otherwise united to the trim, which would in itself give the automatic alining with the finished surface of the wall. An integral joining or uniting of the carrier with the trim is advantageous since it eliminates the presence of screws on the face of the trim and still allows the desired adjustment by means of the screw and slot connections between the carrier and the back box. In such simplified construction economy can be effected by omitting the shield 34, together with any frame, such as the frame 52, for its reception. In so-called non-safety types of boxes a shield is not required. Such a yoke will give all the advantages of universal adjustability constituting a leading feature of the invention.

The advantage of the complete and ready adjustability of the trim and door relative to the back box present in all forms of the invention will be appreciated when it is considered that in former wall cabinets of the class to which the invention relates, great care must be exercised in positioning the back box and notwithstanding that care may be exercised it is frequently found that the trim and door can not be applied conveniently or must be put on out of true. Particular difficulty has been encountered when the box is to be located in a wall of brick or masonry construction. Little or no care need be taken in installing the back box of the present invention, mechanics time is saved, and substantial economies are thus effected in the installation charges.

Numerous other forms and applications of the invention will suggest themselves to those acquainted with the art to which the invention relates. From what has been said it will be understood that in various modifications of the invention certain of the features and advantages of the complete safety type of box illustrated in Figs. 1 to 6 need not be present.

I claim:

1. An electrical wall cabinet which comprises on the one part, a back box adapted to be set in the wall, and on the other part a unitary member which is applied and adjusted in position as a single unit, said unitary member comprising a panel carrier which enters the back box and portions united with the front of the panel carrier and adapted to overlie the finished face of the wall, together with adjustable screw connections between the back of the back box and the back of the panel carrier, which back of the panel carrier has slots to receive the screw connections, so that the front portions of the unitary member may be adjusted flat to the wall and true to the vertical and horizontal irrespective of the position of the back box.

2. An electrical wall cabinet as set forth in claim 1, in which the unitary member constitutes an inner box.

3. An electrical wall cabinet as set forth in claim 1, in which the unitary member consists of a panel carrier and a trim formed in one piece.

4. An electrical wall cabinet as set forth in claim 1, in which the front of the unitary member has a door, and in which there is an inner shield for the electrical equipment, said inner shield being separate from the unitary member and being applicable thereto and removable therefrom through the door opening.

ISAAC D. SILVERMAN. 

